Whither Rite Aid? 19 comments
4730 Forest Drive:
6118 Saint Andrews Road
7900 Garners Ferry Road:
Commenter Mr. BO sends the pictures of the Garners Ferry Rite Aid, saying
I remember when this place was Rosewood Furniture which was raised to make an Eckerds, then I think it was a CVS for a short while before becoming a Rite-Aid. Now Wallgreens purchased the place. With a Wallgreens just a block away, I sort of fear for this store's future. They're not in the system yet so I can't do my prescriptions from Rite-aid's web site and the transfer function only lets you select the store across Garner's ferry from Hazelwood.
I had noticed similar signs on the Forest Acres and Irmo Rite Aid stores: This Rite Aid now has a Walgreens Pharmacy, which is rather like going to Sears and seeing a sign saying This Sears is now stocked by J C Penny.
Looking at google, and Wikipedia, what seems to have been going on is that Walgreens tried to buy the whole of Rite Aid, but the merger was not approved for anti-trust reasons, and Walgreens ended up with only about 2000 Rite Aid locations. Now, the rump Rite Aid chain is in negotiations with the Albertson grocery chain to merge with it.
What actually happens to the stores that Walgreens got is unclear. I would expect many of them to eventually be reflagged, but some of them are really too close to existing Walgreens locations, and those will probably be closed. How close is "too close"? We'll know when it happens, I suppose.
UPDATE 25 September 2018 -- As mentioned by several commenters, the Saint Andrews Road store is now officially a Walgreens:
19 Responses to 'Whither Rite Aid?'
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AmericanColumbia
1 May 18 at 11:59 am
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I was told by an employee at the Rite Aid on the corner of Garners Ferry and Hallbrook, they are closing. Employees were being interviewed for possible transfers to other stores.
Judy
1 May 18 at 8:23 pm
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RAD (Rite-Aid) and WBA (Walgreens) screwed me last year. I bought RAD the day before earnings since WBA was going to buy them out. I just knew I was going to make a killing with this stock. Turns out, after the closing bell, WBA pulled out of the buyout and the RAD stock TANKED. I bought 1000 shares at 3.94 and still have it at 1.64. I am just waiting for someone else to buy them out. Either Albertsons or Kroger or hopefully someone better. Either way, I don't think I will get my money back.
Sidney
2 May 18 at 12:31 am
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Today I noticed that the Kmart at 1500 Charleston Highway had a sign welcoming Rite Aid pharmacy customers...
At one point will someone stand up to these large mergers...I wish anti-trust laws were strengthened and oligopoly tendencies were clamped down on (it's going on in just about ever industry I feel)...
Andrew
4 May 18 at 8:21 pm
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Everyone is trying to fend off Amazon's next move. Yesterday they announced their own brand of dog food.
Joe Shlabotnik
4 May 18 at 9:48 pm
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The one on Treo Notch and Rabon Rd in Northeast is closing down
Megan
15 May 18 at 3:13 am
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I just received a notice that the Rite Aid at the corner of Garner's Ferry & Hallbrook will be closing on May 24th but the Walgreens that's just down the road will cheerfully take my prescriptions.....
Mr BO
18 May 18 at 3:43 pm
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The Rite Aid at 6118 St. Andrews Road has been undergoing exterior painting in recent days...
Amdrew
2 Jun 18 at 12:12 am
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The Rite Aid at 6118 St. Andrews Road is completing an overhaul into a Walgreens...
Andrew
28 Jun 18 at 6:30 pm
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It appears to me as if the Rite Aid on Forest Drive (near Trenholm Road) is about to become a Walgreens...
Andrew
22 Jan 19 at 11:58 pm
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Renovation work is currently happening at this former Rite Aid on Garners Ferry Rd also.
Joe Shlabotnik
23 Jan 19 at 2:56 am
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A few weeks back I saw a news report leading me to realize that the Rite Aid that was at Cedar Terrace is now a Walgreens (thoough such hasn't featured here yet)...
Andrew
17 Apr 19 at 11:48 pm
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Yes, Rite Aid is now entirely out of the Columbia market (and Walgreens will not honor their gift cards..)
ted
18 Apr 19 at 12:10 am
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Folks Rite Aid has filed for bankruptcy. Apparently they still have about 2,200 locations remaining across 17 states...part of me wishes we had something besides CVS and Walgreens but idk what the solution is (unless we can go back to (before my time) having pharmacies like Parkland Pharmacy & Taylor Street Pharmacy (which wound up getting bought by Revco))...
Andrew
16 Oct 23 at 10:57 pm
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I have also discovered this article talking about the issues leading CVS, Walgreens & Rite Aid to close thousands of stores...
Andrew
17 Oct 23 at 9:09 pm
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I have never been that warm to CVS, but I like Walgreens. To me their niche is that place you can get most of what you need without having to deal with the huge parking lot and having to walk a mile inside a Super Wal-Mart..
ted
17 Oct 23 at 11:32 pm
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The only reason I deal with CVS is because my insurance forces me to use them. If it were up to me I would probably use Walmart or Publix to get my prescriptions filled. CVS inflates their prices more than anyone else I know. I happened to glance at a price of $11.00 for a quart of Hellman's mayonnaise the other day. I almost had an aneurysm. Other pharmacies may be just this bad but I have no way of knowing.
Homer
18 Oct 23 at 12:11 pm
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This happened twice in the past. I was applying for part-time jobs. I got interviews at CVS. I showed up for the interviews...and nobody knew anything about the interviews. No managers nor other employees. And yes, I was at the correct locations. This happened on two separate occasions, with two locations in two different cities. I never applied at any location again.
Robin
18 Oct 23 at 4:55 pm
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My main use for CVS is that I get photos printed there...other than that I only shop at both of them (especially Walgreens) on an occasional basis...
Andrew
18 Oct 23 at 11:14 pm
All Rite Aid stores owned by Walgreens within a mile of another Walgreens location will eventually close as a part of 700 stores closing. For now they will continue to use the Rite Aid name and products until each location is evaluated for its future.